Petrie: time to perform

NORTH Melbourne key forward Drew Petrie says it's high time for the Kangaroos to embrace expectations.

North Melbourne was among the most disappointing AFL performers in round one, going down to Essendon by 39 points in a margin that flattered the losing team.

The Kangaroos have been widely tipped to be among the competition's big improvers in 2014 after only playing one finals match in coach Brad Scott's previous four years at the helm.

"Expectation and pressure is a good thing because if you want to become a really good side and a consistent finals side then you're going to have the spotlight on you a lot of the time," Petrie said yesterday.